Category: P

  • Proctoscopy

    Visual examination of the rectum with a proctoscope. A rectal examination with a proctoscope. An examination of the rectum using a proctoscope. Direct examination of the anus and rectum with a proctoscope, to detect abnormalities. Examination of the anus and rectum by using a rigid, cylindrical tube called a proctoscope. Proctoscopy enables the doctor to…

  • Primipara

    A woman who has delivered one child of at least 20 weeks’ gestational age. A women who is about to deliver a baby for the first time. A woman who has given birth to one child. The medical designation for a woman who has given birth to one live infant, often noted on the hospital…

  • Positive end-expiratory pressure

    Mechanical ventilation with pressure maintained, thereby increasing the volume of gas remaining in the lungs at the end of expiration. The procedure of forcing a person to breathe through a mask in cases where fluid has collected in the lungs. A treatment that provides mechanical breathing assistance for people with respiratory problems that prevent adequate…

  • Plasmapheresis

    The process of separating blood into its components by centrifuging. A process of filtering the blood. An operation to take blood from someone, then to separate the red blood cells from the plasma, and to return the red blood cells suspended in a saline solution to the patient through a transfusion. Method of removing plasma…

  • Phototherapy

    Treatment of disease by exposure to light. A treatment for jaundice and vitamin D deficiency, which involves exposing the person to ultraviolet rays. The medical treatment of diseases with light, in any of a variety of forms, including sunlight, ultraviolet light, visible blue light (as in fluorescent bulbs), and lasers. Newborns who are affected with…

  • Photocoagulation

    The coagulation (clotting) of tissue by controlled use of a laser in order to seal off bleeding blood vessels. The process in which tissue coagulates from the heat caused by light, used to treat a detached retina. Destruction of tissue by an intense beam of light, used to destroy diseased retinal tissue or to create…

  • Phonological

    Refers to oral communication or vocal sounds.  

  • Pessary

    An object placed in the vagina to support the uterus. A drug in soluble material which is pushed into the vagina and absorbed into the blood there. A contraceptive device worn inside the vagina to prevent spermatozoa entering. A device like a ring, which is put into the vagina as treatment for prolapse of the…

  • Peau d’orange

    Condition in which the skin is dimpled, resembling the skin of an orange. Thickened skin with many little depressions caused by lymphoedema which forms over a breast tumour or in elephantiasis. A state where the skin retains its natural hue but exhibits a texture resembling that of an orange peel. The dimpled skin texture arises…

  • Pathologist

    One who specializes in the study of disease. A doctor who specialises in the study of diseases and the changes in the body caused by disease, examining tissue specimens from patients and reporting on the presence or absence of disease in them. A doctor who examines dead bodies in order to find out the cause…